


Forevermore

by NimmermehrMir



Category: Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: Cute Kids, Domestic Fluff, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff and Crack, Parent Tony Stark, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-24
Updated: 2020-05-11
Packaged: 2020-09-25 06:34:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20372284
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NimmermehrMir/pseuds/NimmermehrMir
Summary: [Symbiote male reader insert IronDad oneshots]Driving through New York you can see some weird stuff, and Tony Stark is no exception to this.  While driving through the streets of his city he finds an abandoned child, he finds you.This is the story of how he brought you in and raised you the best he could. This is how he raised you, a symbiote holder as well as he could.(Updated every Saturday!)





	1. Forever and a Day

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Marvel, all I own is the plot

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" This was the third traffic jam Tony's come across in the past 20 minutes, and due to how the street he had turned off of was positioned there was no way he could back out of this one.

With a dramatic sigh, he leaned back in his chair, pulling his sunglasses from his face. It was mid-June, the bright sun beating down on the city. The temperature wasn't bad, a bit on the hotter side of the scale, but not too bad. Though even then it would be a mistake to go outside all day without someway to protect yourself from it.

With another sigh, he grabbed his phone from the holder he had managed to put up just hours ago, knocking it down again as he did so. Rolling his eyes at it he flipped his phone open, scrolling through the mass amount of messages he would never answer.

There were only a few that he had answered, and those were from Pepper or Rhodey, while the rest were unanswered requests for interviews, press conferences, or some other stupid stuff like that. None of it was new, none of it was interesting, and none of it helped him forget about the traffic jam before him.

Rolling his eyes, with a groan for added dramatics this time, he set it down, leaning back once more. Life had been slow lately, oddly enough. As Iron Man and a member of the Avengers, or not really an Avenger anymore, it was more of him and the rogues, life was never slow, but for some reason, it was for him. 

It was as if it was finally catching up to his age, which he noticed his body was doing as well. He was 53 and still fighting crime, which he loved to do, but in the mornings some times, it was harder for him to get out of bed than it used to be.

Before his thoughts could derail themselves further he shook his head, watching in boredom as the trail of cars before him never moved. It was ridiculous, why where there so many people out right now!? It was 2 in the afternoon, what was happening?! 

A loud, jarring sound then ruined his silence, making his heart stop. He sadly knew that sound by heart, the sound of a gunshot. He snapped his head over to the left, his eyes zeroing on a man holding a child by the throat while he had a gun in the other.

He seemed to be yelling about something, yelling at the child who was crying and trying to get out of his grip, but Tony couldn't hear it for his world had gone silent as he watched this black goo-like stuff seep from the kid's skin, moving to cover the man's hand at his throat.

He watched in wonder as the man started to freak out, everyone around him freaking out as well. The few bystanders that had stayed to watch after the gunfire started to run away, though a few stayed behind like idiots to take videos. Tony could see it now, he could see the news headline. "Mutant child turns on a random man without reason."

He's seen it before, the news putting mutants at the lowest point ever. They were new to society, and people were still trying to understand them, but many just hated them, and Tony was tired of it.

Tony opened his door quickly, managing to startle the man with the gun who fired a shot in his fright. The bullet thankfully never reached the kid, for that black goo formed a shield, absorbing the round.

The man snapped his head over to Tony who stood in defiance. He looked quite stupid as he stood there, he was without his armor, without a weapon, standing in the middle a barren street in a tailored suit with a gun possibly to be put at his head.

The man hardly even glanced at him before recognizing him, but his attention wasn't on him for long. That weird black goo from the kid was starting to move more, the kid starting to scratch at the hand holding him. 

Tony watched in wonder as the goo completely enveloped the man's wrist, cringing when a sickening crack echoed through the street. The man screamed in pain, dropping to his knees, the gun skidding away from him.

The kid stumbled away, and Tony could see that he was only 4 at most, small and battered. His (H/C) hair was in disarray, sticking up in awkward angles while dirt and other grim stained his (S/T) cheeks. 

The kid's eyes were wide and wild, (E/C) orbs snapping down to look at the black sludge around his neck. "Venom," he heard the kid whisper softly, trying to gather the goo into his hands, "you shouldn't be out...."

This was just enough time for the man to recover, grabbing the gun in his good hand to train it on the child. Tony, who had been forgotten, lunged at the man, knocking him over and the gun from his hand. The kid yelped, ducking down as the man ran into the store beside them, his head hitting the brick with a sickening sound, successfully knocking him out cold.

Tony let out a soft sigh, standing over the prone body. That could have been handled better, but there was nothing that could be done now. Rubbing at his forehead a bit the billionaire looked over to the kid, brown eyes locking with (E/C).

Crouching down Tony tired to be less scary to the kid, who still had to look up at him. The kid's eyes were wide, his hands still held partially to his chest as he held the strange black goop. It shimmered in the light, almost iridescent, but before Tony could look at it much more it started to retreat, absorbing into the kid's skin.

Tony's eyebrows furrowed slightly as he watched it. It couldn't be anything like a liquid, or even a solid, it was some mass between it that was either part of the mutant kid or alien, both were extremely likely.

Tony shifted a bit, offering a hand to the kid who hesitated before putting his smaller one into his grasp. "I'm Tony Stark, what's your name?" The kid's eyebrows furrowed, Tony noticing how his skin had started to cool down like he had been dumped with ice water.

"You're a superhero, right....?" The kid asked instead of answering, which frustrated Tony a bit, but there was nothing he could do. "Yeah," he said softly, but then there was a feeling of wetness around his hand.

A quick glance down told him that the black ooze was moving around his hand, but not in the same way it had been with the guy from earlier. Earlier it was immediate, moving to flow over his hand and wrist, but this was slower.

The longer Tony watched the more he noticed about it. It was moving slowly, little bits of it moving like fingers almost, poking and prodding to test an area to make sure it was safe before moving onward.

"My names (M/N)," the kid, (M/N), said randomly, making Tony look up from their hands. He nodded his attention fighting to keep his gaze on the kid. "And that," Tony let his gaze fall to the blackness that (M/N) was motioning at with his chin, "is Venom."

The black ooze rippled a bit like it was showing that it understood that it had been called out. It continued to cautiously move forward onto Tony, now covering his fingers, his hand, and a little of his wrist. It was a weird feeling, almost like silly putty, or play dough, cold and wet, but never leaving a residue.

(M/N), with his free hand, gently swiped some dust off of Tony's shoulder, but he did it gingerly as if he was afraid he would leave more dirt on his suit. Tony could understand his reluctance to do it, he was dirty, his clothing was trashed, covered in rips and dirt and other muck, his skin stained with dirt, mud, or whatever had gotten on him while he's been on the streets.

The ooze then decided to retreat, slowly moving off of Tony, in turn, to move about (M/N), some of it making little lines along his cheeks and disappearing down the collar of his shirt. It was strange, it definitely shouldn't have been there, but God Tony was curious and that was bad by itself.

With a light sigh, the billionaire stood up, offering a hand for the kid to hold. "Why don't we go find your parents?" He asked softly, only for (M/N) to shake his head and step back. With furrowed eyebrows Tony crouched down again, waiting as the (H/C) haired child tried to get his grasp.

"I can't," he said softly after a minute or so of silence, "I can't because I don't remember them..." (E/C) eyes were downcast, and Tony could tell he was doing his best to not cry. Reaching out again Tony tried to pull the kid to him, tried to comfort him, only for that black ooze to seep from his skin, slowly enveloping his smaller body. 

"No, no," (M/N) said with a bit of panic lacing his voice, "Venom it's fine, I'm fine, he's not gonna hurt me." The ooze, Venom, seemed to shift a bit like it was weighing its odds, but then it started to seep back into (M/N)'s body.

Tony relaxed as he watched the blackness disappear, but then he went rigid as it started to seep from (M/N)'s shoulder, slowly forming what could be guessed as a head-like shape. When it was done rippling a large mouth, or maw however you took it, slowly opened from it, wicked sharp teeth glinting in the June sun. 

It was like something from a horror movie, the black ooze forming the face of a demon. His mouth was large, large enough to envelop someone's head, wicked teeth sharp enough to cut through skin and bone, while his eyes were a milky substance that angled so he looked angry.

The head moved in front of Tony, who was looking at it like an idiot seeing an alien for the first time. A large tongue rolled out of the mouth when it opened, drool running out of it like a begging dog, and Tony just sat there, watching.

"No, no!" (M/N) said again, this time a bit more forcefully. "You can't be out, Venom! You know what happened last time!" Small hands grappled at the blackness, the milky eyes downcast to (E/C) ones.

"But (M/N)......" A deep voice trailed off, resonating from nowhere, but Tony could place where it was from. The face, Venom Tony reminded himself again, looked almost sad as it looked at the scraggly boy before him. 

(M/N) puffed his cheeks up, pouting up at the thing that would normally scare children into wetting their pants. Venom let out a grumble before seeping back into the (S/T) skin that made up his home, Tony watching in wonder.

Once all of the blackness was gone (M/N) clasp his hands in front of him, his head downcast. "Sorry about that," he said softly, his voice having a waver in it that told Tony he was afraid, afraid of rejection. 

"That was Venom," he went on, lightly shuffling his feet, "he lives inside me, keeps me safe." Tony nodded dumbly, his nerves shot one too many times in the past hour or so. It shouldn't have surprised him, the world had been calm for far too long, this was the chaos he was needing.

Closing his eyes the billionaire drug a hand through his hair. This young boy was named (M/N), he was only 4 at most, and he was harboring an alien made of black ooze that had sharp teeth and milky white eyes named Venom. Yeah, this was one Hell of an afternoon. 

Nodding to himself Tony opened his eyes, brown locking with wide, curious (E/C). (M/N) had tilted his head slightly, making him look like a questioning puppy, and God he was cute. Tony knew it was a bad idea, he knew Pepper would be pissed, but it felt right, it felt like it was the only thing he could do, which compared to the other options it was the best he could.

With a deep breath, Tony reached out again, waiting patiently for (M/N) to put his hand into his much larger one. Like before Venom started to ooze out of (S/T) skin, moving to envelop the entwined hands. This time it was a bit faster, Venom not testing every patch of his skin before settling, and Tony was glad for that, it had been a bit of an odd feeling.

"(M/N)," he said softly, calmly, "would you like to come with me?" The young (H/C) haired boy looked up at him in wonder, like one might at the stars. It was looking good, it was looking like (M/N) would say yes, but Venom seemed to have other plans.

Where the ooze was wrapped around his hand Tony noticed that he was starting to feel it put pressure down. It wasn't bad, it didn't hurt, but there definitely was more pressure than before, and it seemed to continue to go up as Tony waited for (M/N)'s answer. 

The young boy nodded after a few seconds, his eyes practically sparkling as he looked up at Tony, and that broke something inside him. Disregarding Venom who was still on his hand Tony pulled (M/N) to him, his free hand tangling in unruly (H/C) locks as the young boy pressed his face to his chest. 

Tony could feel his shirt starting to dampen, the boy crying silently. Tony did nothing to stop him, he only held the boy close while carding his fingers through his hair, doing his best to calm him. He wanted this, God he did, he wanted a son, he wanted to help, and this was his chance to do both.

Tony crouched with (M/N) for a while, soothing the boy as he cried himself to sleep. They were an odd pair, a billionaire in a suit and tie crouched down with a small, dirty boy held close to him in the middle of an abandoned New York street, but it's not like Tony cared, he never had and most likely never will.

Tony stilled as he felt the odd wet and cold feeling make its way over the hand he had against (M/N)'s head. Leaning back he watched the goop move around before the wide grin formed on it, eyes soon following after.

"You will take care of him, you will not hurt him." The deep voice demanded, and Tony felt as if he was talking to the father of a girlfriend. He nodded dumbly, not wanting to make a fool of himself in front of Venom. The milky eyes narrowed slightly, as if not trusting him.

"You will take care of us," Venom growled at the billionaire, "we will not separate." Tony nodded dumbly again, this time managing to find his voice.

"Of course, you won't need to separate." Venom looked him over as if sizing him up, and Tony could feel his skin crawl. Venom had the look of a predator, of an animal about to pounce on its prey, but the inky alien just seeped back into (M/N), making Tony let out a light sigh of relief.

Now all he had to do was make sure Pepper didn't kill him, she had it in her to do it, and Tony's charm hardly ever worked on her anymore. This would be a job for tactics, for strategy, and Tony had one that worked quite well.

He was going to whine like a little bitch until he got what he wanted.

\----------

End of Chapter 1! I hope you all are liking this, it's really fun to write. So we're gonna go through Tony and (M/N)'s life together, starting at age 4 and working our way up from there. 

I will be taking requests like a one-shot book, but I'll just be putting them in as the age we're at in the book unless you specify, so please be thorough in your requesting!

Thank you all for reading, I hope you enjoyed!


	2. Home or No

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the wait, I just got slammed with school stuff and work......

"No, absolutely no!" Pepper was pissed, 100%, holding no remorse for the man before her. Tony had come in, holding (M/N) close to his chest hoping to sneak by, only for Pepper to notice him at the last second. It had started out alright, Pepper cooing over (M/N), checking him for injuries, but then she started to question things.

"Oh come on Pepper," Tony whined, his voice a bit higher as he did so. (M/N) was on the couch, still asleep, while Pepper and himself were in the common room kitchen hashing it out. Pepper looked unimpressed, her eyebrows raised in a mocking way, her hands on her hips. He knew this look well, it was the look of her putting her foot down. Normally he wouldn't fight this, only having around a 1% chance of changing her mind, but this was something he wanted, something he wanted so badly.

"Pepper, he's only 4 at max," Tony started, his voice quiet but desperate, "I couldn't just leave him!" Pepper faltered at that a bit, but Tony knew not to get his hopes up, Pepper played dirty, using everything to her advantage.

"I get that," she started out calmy, "but you are not going to be able to take care of a child and run a business at the same time! One or the other is going to get neglected and everything will go downhill." She was right, but whoever listened to reason?

"Does it look like I care," he questioned in a quiet, serious voice. Pepper looked at him in shock, Tony was a good businessman, but he was rarely serious about anything. "Pepper, I know what I'm getting into," he started softly, but as he went on his voice started to gain volume, "but I don't care how hard it's going to be, because I am not leaving him somewhere where I know he's not going to be taken care of, I won't do that to a kid!"

"Tony?" A soft voice managed to get out, just hardly being heard over Tony's tantrum. Said male looked around Pepper, seeing that (M/N) was standing in the doorway of the kitchen. His eyes were slightly droopy, still a bit fuzzy from sleep. He was adorable, and Tony knew that was gonna be a trump card against Pepper. She'd always had a weakness for cute things.

As expected Peppers cold expression melted away, her eyes going soft at the sight of the (H/C) haired boy. (M/N) looked up at her for a second or two before moving away from her, taking place next to Tony, who had crouched down to his height.

(M/N) tilted his head slightly, reminding Tony of a confused puppy, before motioning him to get closer, as if to tell him a secret. Tony complied, getting closer to the young boy, but he still was hardly able to hear him whisper.

"Do you have any chocolate?" the soft voice said, confusing Tony. Nodding, Tony leaned a bit closer to (M/N), whispering back to him. "Do you want some?" He got a silent nod from the child, confusing him farther. Earlier (M/N) had been just fine with talking, a bit shy, but he had been fine, now he was just silent, non-verbal.

Getting up from where he had been crouched Tony looked through the cupboards, finding the secret stash of candy he had hidden a while ago. Taking out a single chocolate bar he handed it to (M/N), only for it to get snatched out of his hands, Pepper looking at him like he's crazy.

"What are you thinking! He shouldn't eat this, he needs real food, Tony!" (M/N) was looking up at her in this weird mix of passive anger and sadness, and much to Tony's confusion Venom started to ooze out of his shoulder, forming a head high enough up to match Pepper's height.

Pepper's eyes threatened to bulge from her skull as she looked at Venom, the black mass grinning at her with all those teeth. Tony expected some growling, yelling, but all he got was silence, Venom staring Pepper down, the poor woman looking like she was gonna run.

"Phenethylamine," (M/N) said softly, getting Tony's attention. Confused he crouched down to (M/N)'s height. "What about it?" He questioned, Venome slowly starting to retract, but his eyes stayed glued to Pepper.

"It's what he eats," he whispered, the young male grabbing the chocolate bar Pepper had dropped in her shock, "it's in chocolate." Tony nodded, looking (M/N) and Venom over in curiosity, but his eyes lingered on small hands, small hands that were trembling as they opened the chocolate bar, holding it out to Venom.

The black mass moved forward slowly, taking half of the chocolate bar gently, staying away from small (S/T) fingers. (M/N) took small bites out of the piece Venom had left him, but after only 2 or 3 he grimaced, holding the rest out for his alien. 

Tony watched all of this in wonder mixed confusion, Pepper watching in practical fear mixed confusion. "Tony," she hardly managed to get out, her voice strained, "could we talk in private?" He knew this was coming, this is how she was gonna tear him down, lay everything out nice and neat, break Tony down to the point where he thought he would cry, only for her to stop right on the razor's edge, leaving him to pick everything up.

(M/N) looked between them for a second or two before he lowered his head, a sense of shame and dread finding it's way into his mind. Tony, somehow managing to realize this, sat down next to the young (H/C) haired boy, pulling him into his lap.

(M/N) looked up at him in confusion but soon enough relaxed, laying his head onto Tony's shoulder. Tony didn't really know what to do, but he knew what he wanted, he wanted (M/N) healthy, happy, and unbothered by the world.

Gathering the scraggly boy into his arms Tony forced himself to stand up without putting him down. (M/N) hid his face into Tony's shoulder, wrapping his arms around his neck and his legs around his abdomen, much like a koala. It would have been cute, if Tony wasn't so tuned into the fact that (M/N) was pressed against him, letting him feel every single bone in his body. 

Ignoring Pepper, who was giving him the look, he held (M/N) close while he walked over to the elevator, deciding to go up to his floor. Before the doors closed Tony got a good look at Pepper glaring at him, much like she used to before he fell apart on her.

When the doors had closed all the way he let out a deep breath, the tension he didn't even know he was holding draining from him like water down a gutter. It was ridiculous, he wasn't CEO anymore, all he had to do was go to meetings, why was Pepper acting like it was the end of the world, I mean, they weren't even together anymore!

When the doors opened to his floor Tony let out another deep breath, walking into the living room that was decorated with couches and chairs and tech and pretty much anything you could think of. It was nice, quiet, but it didn't bring the comfort the lab did for him, but it would have to do.

(M/N) was still awake, clutching the back of Tony's shirt, but he was calm, his face holding a sort of passive blankness to it. "FRIDAY," Tony called out softly as he walked through a few hallways, "make sure I'm not disturbed please." "Of course Boss," a females voice called out of nowhere, causing (M/N) to flinch in surprise.

Looking around he found that there wasn't anyone around them, only he and Tony were in the clean bathroom. When the older male set him down on the closed toilet (M/N) looked up at him in confusion, Tony raising an eyebrow at him in response until realized why (M/N) was looking at him that way. 

"Ah, (M/N) this is FRIDAY, FRIDAY this is (M/N)," Tony motioned to the ceiling when he said FRIDAY's name, making the young boy look up in wonder. "Hello," the female voice says again, "my names FRIDAY, I'm an AI." 

Tony chuckled at (M/N)'s shell shocked expression, looking away from the young boy to start running a bath, listening as a whispery voice filled the silence. "Are you in the walls?" (M/N) whispered, looking around as he talked to FRIDAY. 

"No," FRIDAY said in a soft voice, amusement there, "I'm not in the walls." (M/N) looked around a bit more before turning his attention to Tony, who had leaned against the wall to watch him interact with his AI. Smiling he offered a hand to the young boy, who took it without hesitation this time.

Gently he peeled the dirty clothes from (M/N), watching in mild horror as scars were brought to his eyes, some covering large amounts of his skin. (M/N) seemed to ignore his prying eyes, considering once his clothing was off he got into the bathtub, Venom seeping out of him into the water, moving like a snake almost.

"Venom," (M/N) said softly, but it was louder than before, "be careful, don't spill the water." The black mass moved gracefully throughout said water, hardly creating a ripple, but he was careful to not spill any of it once the water had gotten quite high.

Tony wouldn't have cared if it had spilled or not, water was easy to clean up, and this bathtub was made for spillage. At the bottom of it were a few drains meant to catch the overflow, making sure that you could keep the water warm for as long as you wanted without having to drain the old water, which they were gonna have to do anyway.

The water was already turning murky, dirt and grime coming off (M/N) easily, giving way to (S/T) skin. Kneeling on the floor Tony grabbed a washcloth from under the sink, getting it wet before pouring a generous amount of body wash onto it. It was lavender scented, just about the only thing Tony could stand when he had to bath, and it was meant for sensitive skin.

Gently, he started to scrub at (M/N)'s arms, watching in wonder as layer after layer of dirt came off, practically ruining the washcloth after a few minutes. When the water had turned to mud he reached down, opening the drain. As the water drained he watched as (S/T) legs came into view, letting him see scars crisscross over them like his arms and chest. It was a terrible thing to see, to see the damage so close to his own on a child. 

When all the dirty water was gone Tony turned the faucet back on, pouring warm water in once again. He repeated this process a few times, once for his arms, twice for his chest and back, and once for his legs and feet, but now it was time to tackle his hair.

(M/N)'s hair was (H/C), but it was caked with mud, forming a literal rats nest. As gently as he could Tony poured water into his hair as he ran his fingers through it, trying to get some of the bigger knots out before he washed it. A few times his fingers got caught, making him curse when (M/N) let out a whimper, Venom, who was still in the water, curling himself around (M/N) in comfort.

When he felt it was safe he poured a large amount of shampoo into his hands, scrubbing it into (H/C) locks. It was disgusting, to say the least, the suds were stained brown almost immediately, his hair feeling gritty for a solid five minutes. It took 3 different doses of shampoo before his hair felt even remotely like hair, then it took another 2 before it felt clean.

By this time they had drained and ran the water 5 different times, but now (M/N) was clean, skin a bit ruddy due to the scrubbing it had taken to actually clean it, but he looked good, healthy. 

Draining the water for the last time Tony gathered (M/N) in a fluffy towel, bringing the young boy into his room. (M/N) sat on the edge of Tony's bed while said male went through his draws, pulling out an old AC/DC t-shirt. Gently he scrubbed at (H/C) hair before slipping the young boy into the shirt.

He could tell (M/N) was tired, the boy dozing as Tony brushed through his hair, which was a bit on the longer side, leading the genius to put it into a little pony-tail to make sure it didn't get matted as he slept. 

By this time (M/N) was huddled up next to him, ready to fall asleep at a moments notice. Tired himself Tony slipped out of his suit, or what was left of it, and pulled on an old t-shirt and sweats, slipping into his bed with (M/N).

"FRIDAY," he called out softly, as to not disturb (M/N), "turn the lights off please." With that the room was dark, the only sound being that of the two of them falling asleep.


	3. Rogue Anger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've kinda given up on a schedule for updating so here ya go

This was probably the first, and only peaceful morning Tony had ever had. It was around 10 in the morning, and nothing had happened yet. Yeah, he didn't sleep too well, afraid that something would happen to (M/N), which nothing had.

The young boy was in the same position he had spent most of the night in, curled up against Tony's side, completely swallowed up by the shirt he was wearing. Tony knew he would have to get up soon, he'd have to get some food up to his room, he'd have to get some clothing for (M/N), he'd have to get a room for him also, and the legal papers to adopt him, and a press conference to explain himself...... There was a ton of stuff he needed to get done.

Slowly he extracted himself from (M/N)'s hold, the young boy furrowing his eyebrows a bit but stayed asleep, pulling Tony's pillow to his chest. He looked Hell of a lot healthier than he did last night, that bath really helped, but now he looked a like a bag of skin and bones. It was obvious that he hadn't eaten in quite some time.

As quietly as he could Tony left the room, making sure (M/N) was tucked in before he did, and made his way tot he kitchen. It was mostly bare, there wasn't much in the cupboards except for coffee and a few poptarts that were probably stale by now. 

With a sigh, he started to rub his forehead, his mind running a million miles a minute as he thought about what to do. This is why he didn't hear FRIDAY's warning, why he didn't hear the elevator ding when it stopped at his floor, and why he didn't hear the footsteps getting closer to him until someone put their hand on his shoulder.

With a gasp that could rival a white girl in shock Tony jumped a bit, turning to look at whoever was behind him, only to come face to face with Steve Rogers, the one man he never wanted to see again. Steve was an alright guy if you left Bucky out of the picture, but you know, everything falls apart at some point.

"God, don't do that! I have a heart problem you know!" Tony said in a joking voice, but he wasn't joking. Anytime he was around Steve his heart rate picked up to dangerous levels, he was pretty sure the guy was gonna be the death of him at some point. 

Steve gave him that disappointed look, the "You shouldn't raise your voice at your teammates" look, like that was going to work. Hardly suppressing the urge to roll his eyes Tony clapped his hands together, ignoring the fact that behind Steve was the rest of the gang; Sam, Wanda, Natasha, and Clint, Bucky probably not wanting to deal with Steve's issues.

"Right," Tony said loudly, trying to clear out his nerves, "I'm a bit busy so uh..." Trailing off he looked over to the hallway that leads to his room, hoping that (M/N) was still asleep so he didn't have to deal with this.

Steve's expression seemed to get a bit darker, the man getting far too close for Tony's comfort, but there was nothing he could do about it as of right now. "Tony," Steve said in a voice that you would only use to scold a child, "you won't answer anyone, Pepper keeps on telling us to schedule a meeting with you like you have office hours, what's going on?"

This time Tony did roll his eyes, deciding that (M/N) would be the perfect distraction from this. "FRIDAY," he called out, walking out of the kitchen into the living room, the team following him, "is (M/N) up?"

He could feel Steve look at him, and the glares from Clint and Natasha, but he promptly ignored them, looking up at the ceiling while he waited for FRIDAY to reply. "Sorry sir," she called out, her voice sheepish, "I was helping (M/N) get to the bathroom, but yes, he's been up for a few minutes now."

Tony hummed a nodded, bouncing a bit on the balls of his feet, making him realize he didn't have socks on, the floor was cold. "Right, well, lead him out here once he's done, if you would please." FRIDAY didn't say anything back, but he knew she had heard him, now all he had to do was deal with the rogues in his living room. 

Turning around he noticed that Steve had the disappointed face on again, this one meant for lectures. "Tony," he said softly like he was approaching an animal about to run, "if you've started to sleep around again...."

Tony raised an eyebrow, shocked that Steve would even suggest that. Schooling his features Tony looked up at him, his face neutral. "I'll have you know I'm clean," he said in a soft, calm voice that betrayed itself, "I've been clean, you can ask Pepper or Rhodes, Hell even ask FRIDAY, I'm clean." 

Steve looked as if he didn't believe him, ready to keep on rolling, ready to start a lecture while the rest of his team watched in disinterest, but that was derailed when the sound of small feet padded down the hallway. 

A mop of (H/C) peeked around the edge of the hallway, (M/N)'s hair having fallen out of the ponytail somewhere throughout the night. He looked at the rogues in confusion before his eyes landed on Tony, to which his expression brightened.

(M/N) watched the rogues warily as he stepped out of the hallway, Tony's heart melting at the sight of the young boy in the far too big shirt with his hands clutching a brush to his chest. When he deemed it safe he walked over to Tony, moving to stand behind the man's legs to keep his eyes on the others. 

Tony then crouched down to his height, carding his hands through (H/C) hair to find the stray hairband, slipping it onto his wrist when he did. Sliding down he moved to sit on the floor, moving (M/N) to sit in his lap as he brushed through his hair, the young boy seeming to rock back and forth a bit as they sat there in silence.

Once done Tony slipped it into a ponytail once again, but (M/N) made no move to get up, and neither did Tony. (M/N) was leaned up against him, his head tucked under Tony's chin while said male looked up at Steve with a bored look that soon turned into a smirk.

"As you can see," Tony said in a condescending voice, "I'll be busy for uh..." Looking down he caught (M/N)'s eyes, seeing that he was smiling lightly made his smirk turn into a full-blown grin. "I'll be busy the next 18 or so years." 

Steve looked at him in shock, as if this was something he never expected Tony to do, which really wasn't something Tony ever thought he would do. "Tony," he started, "you can't just leave us."

Tony raised an eyebrow at him, keeping (M/N) tucked to himself. "Oh can't I?" At this time something cold and wet moved along his arm, forcing his attention from Steve to Venom. The symbiote was letting out little tendrils, some of them moving along Tony's arms, most of them were moving along (M/N), striping over his skin.

Steve's eyes practically bulged out as he looked at the moving black mass, Natasha looking uncomfortable for once while Sam and Clint just looked a bit shocked. Venom then decided to make a grand entrance, his head forming out of (M/N)'s shoulder, those sharp teeth glinting in the light.

The head wasn't looking at Steve though, it was looking at Tony. "We require food," he growled out, Tony rolling his eyes at the alien. "Yeah yeah," he said softly, picking himself and (M/N) off the floor, moving into the kitchen, "I'm working on it."

Venom narrowed his eyes at him before turning to look at the rogues, who still stood in the living room. "Who are these idiots," he questioned, managing to get Steve out of his shock.

"Now, that's not very nice, but I'm Steve Rogers or Captian America," Steve said, politely but a bit stiff. Venom's eyes narrowed even more before he surged forward, his face leveled to Steve's.

"I will eat both your arms and then both of your legs, then I will eat your face right off of your head, do you understand?" Venom was growly, the black mass growing in size by the second, towering over Steve while (M/N) just stood on the ground, watching as his alien threatened Captian America.

Tony watched in confusion as Venom growled at the man before him, but soon small hands were grappling at the black mass. "Venom, you can't just threaten him!" (M/N) was still quiet, his voice not as loud as it had been in the street yesterday, but it still had the same effect. 

Venom lowered his head down to (M/N)'s height, his large eyes taking on a pouty look, or as pouty as an angry alien symbiote could get. "I do not understand, how is he not a bad guy?" Venom looked at (M/N) with squinted eyes, the young boy huffing and doing the same, mocking the alien.

Venom let out a dramatic sigh before seeping back into (M/N)'s skin, Steve still looking at the two of them as someone might at their first horror movie. It would have been hilarious if it wasn't for the fact that both Clint and Natasha now had their weapons trained on him.

(M/N) looked between them passively, his face blank, but Tony could see that he was nervous, his fingers twitching in a way his used to. Without missing a beat (M/N) turned around, Venom seeping out to cover his arms and legs, but all they did was walk farther into the kitchen, out of the sight of the rogues.

Tony could still see him, he could still see how (M/N)'s hands were shaking like an addict detoxing, like how his used to. He could tell (M/N) was trying to not cry, to not freak out, and considering that he just had two assassins weapons trained on him he was doing pretty well in the not freaking out category. 

Now he was just pissed. For one the rogues had no business being here, second it was supposed to be his day off, and third now they had scared (M/N) into a scarred, trembling mess. This was the start of a wonderful morning. 

Steve then got closer to Tony, leaning down a bit to his height. Tony wanted to back up, wanted to go to (M/N) and comfort him, but he felt that if he didn't get that through Steves thick ass skull now he never would.

"Tony," Steve said softly, "are you alright, do you need any help?" Tony looked up at him in shock, was Steve being a decent person, was he being nice about this? He really looked genuine, as if he wanted to help him with (M/N), then Tony noticed that his hand was twitching to his hip where his utility belt was, where there was a weapon of some kind hidden from view. 

"Yeah," Tony said slowly, looking up at Steve with a sneer, "I do need some help." Leaning over to the table next to him Tony grabbed the notebook sitting there along with a pen, opening it to the first blank page he could find.

"I need someone to go get breakfast for me and (M/N)," he started, writing it down as he ignored Steve trying to interrupt him, "I need someone to see if there's a record of him, I need those records if there are any, I'll need someone to go get him some clothing because mine are so not doing it for him.

"I need to call my renovator, my decorator, and possibly my lawyer. I need someone to knock a few walls down for me, build (M/N)'s room, decorate it, get him some toys and all that jazz. I'll need some of those weird baby books, or in this case toddler books, I'll need some help taking care of him, I'll need a pediatrician to come and look him over, so...." Tearing the page out of the notebook he looked back up at Steve, who looked as if Tony had grown another head, "Unless you can do any of those things, no, I don't need your help."

Steve looked at him in shock once again, but only for a second or two before his gaze switched to stern. "Now Tony," he started out gently, "you can't be serious about all of this." Raising his eyebrows in mock confusion Tony sidestepped him, walking over to (M/N), to which he held a hand out to.

When (M/N) took his hand he pulled the young boy up into his arms, holding him close. "Watch me," he mocked, walking out of the kitchen and down the hallway to his room, closing the door with his foot.

"FRIDAY, show them out if you would," he called out, setting (M/N) on the bed. "Of course." As FRIDAY took care of the rogues Tony gently ran his hands along (M/N)'s arms, noticing how cold he was.

"So," he said softly, moving to kneel on the floor in front of the young boy, "how about we go out for breakfast?"


	4. Papers Please

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about how long this has taken, I actually forgot I had a Ao3 account. haha.....

When (M/N) had calmed down Tony had helped him into a clean shirt and a pair of his old gym shorts. They were still ridiculously long on him, having to be rolled up a couple of times, but they were decent enough to be worn out into public.

He stuck to Tony's side like glue now, small scarred hands clutching one of his as he guided (M/N) through the tower. Neither of them looked all that impressive, (M/N) in oversized clothes while Tony himself was still in the sweat pants and shirt he'd fallen asleep in. Not exactly the best idea but he'd have to roll with it.

Despite looking a bit like hobos Tony guided them to his Aston Martin. Yeah, going out was the last thing he wanted to do, and he's sure (M/N) didn't exactly want to go out either, but it was better than staying at the Tower without Rhodey

....Rhodey... What was he gonna tell him...? He'd supported Tony through everything, but a kid was the one thing he'd told Rhodes he wasn't interested in. Howard Stark had been a shit Father, and Tony was terrified if he had had a kid he'd end up like him, like an ass hole that never wanted a kid....

Tony knew Rhodey wouldn't agree, knew his friend would practically fight him to get him to believe him, or just straight on fight him for fun. It didn't matter to Rhodey, he knew Tony had cleaned himself up, knew he would never act like his Father, and that was a relief.

Once they were actually to the car Tony set about fussing over (M/N), making sure he was comfortable, making sure he was buckled in correctly, even though his hands were shaking. Without reason, (M/N) reached out, both of his hands gripping one of Tony's. It was gentle, but firm, the kid was trying to get his hands to stop shaking, to calm him down.

"It's alright," (M/N) whispered, his eyes large and wild once again, "Venom'll protect us." It was a statement, something (M/N) believed wholeheartedly. Tony wanted to believe him, but Venom was different, something he'd never been around, something he couldn't trust, but he could trust (M/N).

"Alright," Tony said softly, brushing some stray hairs away from (M/N)'s eyes. The kid was cute, large (E/C) eyes and (S/T) skin, but you know, he's got an alien in him so that's a bit weird. Closing the door Tony circled the car to get into the driver's side, only to find Pepper standing there with the keys hanging from her perfectly manicured hand.

She had a gentle smile on her face, far from how she looked last night. She still looked a bit exasperated, but she didn't look angry, but she was good at that, hiding her anger, she could explode any second now. 

She held the keys out for Tony to take, which he did gingerly. "You've come to yell at me?" He questioned, waiting for all Hell to break loose. 

Pepper chuckled a bit but shook her head, "No Tony, I'm not going to yell at you." Her voice was soft, just like how it had been when he'd first brought (M/N) in, full of affection that he felt he didn't deserve.

"FRIDAY sent me this," she continued on, pulling a neatly folded sheet of paper out of her pocket, "said it was all the stuff you needed to be done today." Tony recognized it, it was the list he'd seethed at Steve just a few minutes ago, full of things he needed to get done for (M/N), some of which Pepper could do...

Pepper let out a light laugh but nodded at the sort of wistful look on Tony's face. "I'll look and see if there are any missing reports that match him, I'll call your renovator and decorator, I'll get a pediatrician here to look him over and I'll order a few books on how to take care of kids." Pepper was beaming, marking things off the list FRIDAY had given her, her smile a bit contagious.

"Go," she then said softly, causing Tony's smile to fall for a second or two, "go and get some food, clothes, and get to know him." At that, his face split into a grin, one that you would be feeling a for a while longer, the kind that made your cheeks hurt, but God he was happy.

"I'll help you in any way I can," Pepper continued, " but I will not be his Nanny." "I never expected you to be," his voice was a bit mocking, but he knew Pepper would understand. He was willing to do all of this, all of it on his own if he had to, and having Pepper in his corner helped take an unseen weight off his shoulders.

Turning around he opened the car door, (M/N) looking at him in confusion, but he stayed silent. "Oh, and Tony!" Pepper called out, causing the older male to look over his shoulder at her. "I called Rhodey, he's gonna come and help." That felt like ice on fire, good but it sizzled a bit, like an aftershock. Rhodes would help, he would throw his whole heart into this, but damn he'd wanted to be the one to tell him about it. 

With a single nod to Pepper Tony slid into the car, pulling the seat belt over himself in an afterthought. Looking over at (M/N) he met (E/C) eyes, curiosity radiating off of the kid. "So," he said softly, "what do you wanna eat?"

\--------------------

In the end, they agreed on a little diner that didn't even bat an eye at Tony Stark strolling in wearing flip-flops, sweats, and a T-shirt with welding holes in it while carrying a kid in an oversized shirt and gym shorts. They made a sight that is, but no one seemed to care, and Tony was grateful for that. 

Not being really hungry himself, and knowing that (M/N) shouldn't eat too much, they split a couple of chocolate chip pancakes, eggs, and bacon for each of them, and a lot of coffee and hot chocolate. 

It seemed like a lot of food, but he knew not to eat, or in this case let (M/N) eat, a lot of food after going a long time without any. (M/N) seemed to understand when Tony explained to him that if he ate a lot he would just get sick, but Venom didn't seem to understand, at all.

"Why are we not eating more?" He hissed out, eyes glaring at Tony from beneath the drooping collar of (M/N)'s shirt. Tony rolled his eyes as he nursed his 5th cup of coffee. It was atrociously sweet, filled to the brim with sugar and creamer, just the way he liked it, and he was about ready to pour it over Venom's head.

"I'll get sick," (M/N) said softly, his eyes downcast to be able to look at Venom, "it's been a few days since we've eaten." With a groan that sounded more like a hiss, Venom seeped into (M/N)'s skin, only to form on his shoulder that faced the wall. 

"You know I will not let you get sick, that would be a waste," Venom was trying to get around (M/N) to look him in the face, but (M/N) kept pushing him out of the way, keeping him out of the sight of other people.

Tony watched in mild amusement as (M/N) struggled with his alien. (M/N) was trying to be gentle as he guided him out of sight, but Venom just kept of popping up, eventually (M/N) puffed his cheeks out, looking away from the symbiote. 

It was cute, and Tony could tell (M/N) was faking his frustration, but he wasn't sure about Venom. "(M/N), this is ridiculous, you aren't even angry with me, stop pouting," Venom started out, but them (M/N) seemed to actually pout, only for Venom to start mocking him, "ah yes, look at me, a little human boy, I have no way to protect myself, so fragile and little."

Tony raised his eyebrow at the two of them, a grin settling itself onto (M/N)'s face, but what Venom said was still ringing in Tony's head. "Why did you threaten him," he said softly, (M/N) and Venom turning to look at him.

"Cap, I mean," he continued, "why'd you threaten him?" Venom then started to seep into (M/N), said male giving him a dirty look as he did so.

When Venom had retracted fully (M/N) looked up at him, a bit shy as he did, his eyes slightly downcast. "He can feel people's intentions if they're strong enough," he said softly, tearing away at the napkin in his lap, "it's why he let you near me because your intentions were nice, while his intentions weren't." 

Tony nodded, understanding what (M/N) was saying, but then it finally hit him that (M/N) didn't talk like a 4-year-old. "(M/N)," he said softly, "how old are you?"

The little boy started to kick his legs a bit, swinging them back and forth as the thought. "4 I think," he said softly, (E/C) eyes looking around the diner instead of looking at Tony. "Venom has had other hosts, " he said again, "that's why I have a large vocabur-" (M/N) paused, his eyebrows drawing together. "Vocablur-, vocabulur-." Pausing again he looked up at Tony, a slightly pleading look on his face.

"Vocabulary," Tony said softly, (M/N) nodding along. The two of them then sat in silence, it was nice though, not forced, it was calm. Which it was then shattered by (M/N) reaching over and gently grabbing Tony's free hand.

Looking at him in confusion Tony raised an eyebrow, (M/N) tugging him slightly closer. Complying, Tony leaned over the table, (M/N) leaning up to whisper in his ear. "Where's the bathroom?" Tony let out a light chuckle, but he slid out of the booth they were sitting in, holding his hand out for (M/N), and once he'd taken it guided the two of them to the bathroom.

It only took a few minutes, not long, but it was long enough it seemed. Sitting in their booth was Maria Hill, an agent from Sheild, and Tony was tired already. Maria was wonderful, she was patient, but the only time they sent her to him was when something was wrong.

With a firm grip on (M/N)'s hand, he walked over to the booth, letting (M/N) slip in to look out the window before him. He was quiet, but Tony could see how he was looking at Maria a bit, it was stealthy, probably stealthy enough that Maria hadn't noticed it due to (M/N) being a kid.

Nodding at Maria Tony waited, she would start when she felt it was right to, and she felt immediately was right. "I see you've picked up a companion," she said softly, it wasn't rude, just a statement, but Tony nodded, waiting for her to continue.

"His name is (M/N) Grahm," she said as she handed a few papers to him, legal papers he realized a second or two too late, "his birthday is (Month), (Day), (Year) {Try to keep it around 2015 or so, he'll be 4 then}, and he was never placed under the missing person list." 

Tony looked at her in shock, (M/N) had never been put under missing, his parents never even noticed. Looking through the papers he noticed that there was both a Mother and Father listed, but neither of them even cared that (M/N) was gone.

Maria then slid another stack of papers over to him. "If you want to adopt him you'll have to go through these, and through a court due to his real parents being alive." Tony nodded numbly, pulling the papers close to his chest before looking over at (M/N). His face a passive blank, but his eyes were sad.

Gently, he pulled (M/N) in with one arm, the young boy burrowing his face into his chest, Tony feeling his shirt soak through with tears. Maria looked at him softly, a slight smile on her face. "It won't be hard, "she practically whispered, "the parents have missed every singer appointment for him in the past 6 or so months, but he was never registered as missing so it'll be an easy case."

With another gentle smile Maria got up, leaving the two of them, or three of them as Venom had seeped out a bit, acting a bit like a blanket. It was nice, the thought of (M/N) being his son. All he had to do was be the best Father he could be, and win that damned court battle.


	5. Acceptance for Difference

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've given up on a basic updating schedule. But I will let you know that I have a bunch of chapters written right now so you don't gotta worry about that!

The next few days were calm, which was good. The days consisted of (M/N) and Tony hanging out whether it was in the living room or the lab. Tony finally got Venom to let him do a little test to see what he was made of, (M/N) was checked over by a pediatrician, and a few walls were knocked, built, and (M/N)'s room was put together. 

It all had been simple really, and Tony was thankful. He and (M/N) got along great, and the kid was starting to call him Dad every once and while. Every time it happened his heart felt as if it had stopped, but it wasn't fear to jab at him, it was happiness. 

Pepper, who had noticed that he was increasingly happy around (M/N), started to put together little things they could do together, like little walks around the central park, a couple of educational things, but overall it was fun. 

(M/N) was bright, extremely intelligent and ready to learn anything, but he seemed to have a special place in his heart for anything about the ocean. For hours the two of them would binge Animal Planet and shows about animals, Venom coming out to question if he could eat some of the things on TV, Tony also wondering if he could. But this is how things slowly cracked a bit before it restored itself stronger than ever.

It had been a cold morning, or at least it was cold to Tony. (M/N) was gone, probably in the bathroom, but Tony'd become used to the mass amount of heat the young boy put off now that he was eating normally. With blurry eyes Tony looked over to the clock, finding that it was around 7 AM, far earlier than (M/N) normally got up even for the bathroom.

Confused, and a tad bit tense, Tony pulled himself from the bed, pulling a hoodie over his cold frame. The floor was still dark, quiet, all things you would expect from a horror movie around a jump scare. Peeking out of the room Tony found that the hallway was also dark, the only light coming from the living room, which looked to be the light from the TV.

Him and (M/N) had already had this talk, about how he couldn't just watch TV all day, but he'd never really seemed to want to watch it by himself. Shuffling along the cold floor Tony walked into the living room, finding that (M/N) was actually asleep, cocooned in a mass of blankets and Venom. Said alien was the one watching the TV.

It was still Animal planet, this episode about lions or something of the like, big cats Tony guessed. Moving to stand next to Venom and (M/N) he watched as the black mass rippled around, like water, Venom's head right next to (M/N)'s. It was sort of cute if you can call a mass of black goop and sharp teeth cute. 

"What are you doing up so early?" Tony asked, moving to sit next to his son and alien. Venom rippled a bit more before a bit of him slipped off, moving to wrap around one of Tony's hands. This was normal now, the Symbiote liked to hold hands, and Tony thought it was sweet so he let the alien.

"I was hungry," Venom growled out, but he sounded almost apologetic... Looking away from the TV Tony found that Venom was looking at the ground as if he was apologetic. "The chocolate isn't enough, I need more phenethylamine," Venom continued, and Tony could practically see that he didn't really want to talk about this.

"What do you mean," Tony asked softly, "how much more do you need?" He watched the black mass ripple as if it was shrugging. "A lot more," Venom said, and it was soft, soft in a way you would speak as if expecting rejection.

"Chocolate is not a good source of phenethylamine," the alien continued, "but people are." The world around them seemed to freeze at those words, but Venom just kept on pushing forward. "I only eat bad people, (M/N) would get mad if I ate people that didn't deserve it, and I make sure they deserve it."

Confused, Tony rubbed at his forehead, he'd only been up for about 20 minutes and this was already a train wreck. He knew Venom was afraid he'd freak out, considering one of their very first true conversations were about the fact that (M/N) was happy here and he didn't want to fuck it up for the young boy. 

"I ate a rapist today," the alien said softly, "it will hold me over for around 2 weeks, but as (M/N) grows I will need to eat more." Tony glanced at him from the corner of his eye, it was way too early to deal with this...

"Venom," he said softly, rubbing at his goatee and the stubble around it, "it's too early for this, but just keep him healthy and happy..." At that he got up, shuffling back to his room. He'd deal with this later.

\--------------------

In the morning, it was only around 9 or so, Tony woke up again. This time it wasn't cold, (M/N) curled up in bed next to him but instead of curling close as he usually did (M/N) was as far away from him as possible. Venom was curled around his hands as if he was comforting the young boy, which they were in a way.

Tony remembered getting up earlier, he remembered finding Venom curled around (M/N) as he watched animal planet, and he remembered getting told that his kid and alien had eaten a rapist. With a deep sigh, he looked up at the ceiling, he could tell this was going to be a fiasco already.

Slipping out of bed he made his way to the kitchen, knowing it would be a few before (M/N) got up, and that coffee would help greatly. It took a few minutes for the coffee machine to do its job, and then it took him a few minutes to finish the first cup. Somewhere around the middle of his second cup, he heard (M/N)'s feet patter down the hallway, but it wasn't until he'd finished it that the young boy actually came out from the hallway.

He came over, pulling himself onto one of the stools at the island. He was quiet, but you could tell he was nervous. They two of them sat there in silence, and Tony hated it, (M/N) was panicking and he couldn't even think of what to do.

"I'll leave," (M/N) finally got out, but he said it at the same time Tony said, "I'll make it for you." The two of them blinked a few times before the words of the other finally registered to them. Tony's world fell apart, he thought he'd finally got (M/N) to trust him enough to know that it didn't matter what the kid did, he'd always be in his corner...

"(M/N)," he said softly, pure anguish in his voice, "you don't have to, don't need to..." He was panicking, even more, he could feel his heart picking up its pace, but he needed to get this through to his boy. "I'll figure something out," he said as he moved over to pull (M/N) into his arms, "I'll figure something out."

(M/N) had nodded against Tony's chest, gripping tightly at his shirt. Tony knew it would take a normal scientist a few months to figure out how to make a perfect dose of phenethylamine for a kid, but (M/N) wasn't normal, and neither was Tony.

After a bit of a binge of Blue Planet on Netflix Tony went down to his lab, after (M/N) had balled his eyes out and fallen asleep that is. It would take a little while, maybe a few weeks, but he wouldn't quit, this was something (M/N) needed, and Tony needed (M/N).

\--------------------

After a few initial misfires, one exploded beaker, and an awkward call to Bruce, Tony finally had it, or what he thought was going to be it. It was a little bit sad, just a single meltable tablet that (M/N) had to put in water, but he thought it would work, and dear lord he hoped it did. 

Currently (M/N) was up with Bruce, who had decided to stay the few days it took for Tony to figure this out. It was nice, seeing his science bro with his kid, and the fact that Bruce hadn't been all that concerned about Venom was an added bonus. 

(M/N) had taken an immediate liking to Bruce, dragging the man into the living room to make him watch Animal Planet, play a bit of Mario Kart, and then some excessive questioning, but Bruce didn't seem to mind at least. 

When Tony came up to his floor his nose was met with the sweet smell of chocolate, which meant that Bruce was in the kitchen teaching (M/N) how to bake with his far superior skills in that area. It wouldn't matter if Tony had the worlds best baker teach him, nothing could surpass Bruce Banner in a kitchen. 

(M/N) had the little step stool he always used in the bathroom for when he had to brush his teeth out. It was just plain wood, but the sides were decorated in Iron Man stickers, but now there were little green Hulks along with it too. It clashed horribly, but it was cute and it was (M/N)'s.

He was in a baggy shirt of Tony's again, but this time he had his own gym shorts on underneath, and Bruce wasn't looking much better. Bruce was 54, only a year older than Tony himself, but he was doing good, probably the other guy's doing, but Bruce looked a bit weird in comfortable clothing.

Normally he would be wearing jeans, dress slacks, a button up, some relatively nice clothing, but here he was, standing in the kitchen wearing a threadbare t-shirt that's seen better days, and some of the ugliest pajama pants Tony's ever seen. They were old, with a few holes here and there, but damn they were ugly.

Lightly clearing his throat Tony wanted to get the two dorks attention, but what he got instead was a sharp curse from Bruce who almost dropped the mixing spoon in his hand and a loud yelp from (M/N) as he tried to keep his balance on his step stool. Raising an eyebrow at them he watched as a sharp blush raised to (M/N)'s cheeks and Bruce looking anywhere than at him. 

They were dorks, but good dorks. Chuckling, Tony came into the kitchen, shaking the little ziplock bag he'd put the tablet in when he left the lab. It was a light blue, about the size of a dime, and had enough Phenethylamine in it to be registered as harmful, it was perfect. 

(M/N) got off of his stool to walk closer to him, looking at the tablet in curiosity as Venom seeped out of his shoulder to also look. "What is this," the alien questioned, to which Tony crouched down to his and (M/N)'s height, taking the tablet out of the bag.

"This," he said softly, holding it out for (M/N) to see, "is a tablet of Phenethylamine, vitamin D, and some calcium, but we're gonna see if this can be an alternative." He could see the stars in (M/N)'s eyes, or you know, tears. 

He was crying, big fat tears falling from (E/C) eyes, and so was Tony. (M/N) fell into his chest, knocking Tony all the way to the ground, but he didn't care that his shirt was getting tear-stained, or that his poor old man joints were going to complain about this later, or that Bruce had awkwardly left the kitchen already. 

Someone clearing their throat broke the two of them apart, and that someone was looking none too impressed, and that someone happened to Venom. The alien wrapped himself around one of (M/N)'s hands as well as one of Tony's, giving a light squeeze before seeping back to (M/N).

"How do we test if it works," Venom said, his head floating next to (M/N), and Tony let out a deep breath. Forcing himself to his feet Tony helped (M/N) up before moving to the cupboards, grabbing one of the plastic cups he'd gotten for (M/N) in case he dropped it.

"It's a tablet," he said softly, clearing his throat to get rid of the rasp he tended to get after crying, "you just put it into a cup of water and wait for it to dissolve then drink it." Filling the cup with water he dropped the tablet into it, him, (M/N), and Venom watching it bubble as the tablet dissolved.

"Why is it blue," (M/N) said softly, looking from the cup to Tony. "It's supposed to taste like blueberries," Tony said while grabbing a spoon, mixing the water with it a bit to make sure the tablet was gone.

"Alright," he said softly, handing the cup to (M/N), "moment of truth." (M/N) nodded once before he lifted the drink to his lips, taking large drags of it like every child did when they were drinking something.

When it was all gone he grimaced, and Venom formed on his shoulder. "What's wrong?" Tony asked, concerned that it'd gone wrong. "It doesn't taste like blueberries," (M/N) complained lightly, but that was it, the only thing that he complained about.

"It's good," Venom then said, "it has enough Phenethylamine in it for a few weeks." Tony let out a relieved laugh, nodding as he did so. "I'm glad," he said softly, "I'm really glad." It was only a solution for a few weeks, and the dose would need to go up every few years, but that's alright, he'd figure it out when the time came to it.

Now all he had to do was win a court case and (M/N) would no longer be (M/N) Grahm, it would be (M/N) Stark, and that had a good ring to it. Though he would have to do something with Bruce now, but that was another problem for another time.


End file.
